Japanese and bitter?

[nuppe]

Inspired by the beer part of the nomimono thread I have a question. What part does bitter taste play in Japanese food and drinking? I think the natural thing for human beings is to avoid bitterness. Still, in “Western” food culture we have a quite lot of popular food stuffs and drinks with bitter elements – including some wines and of course beer and coffee. Do we find bitterness also in typical Japanese products or traditions?

[nakji]

Matcha springs to mind almost immediately, of course. Okinawans also enjoy bitter melon scrambled with ham and egg - or is it spam?

[Hiroyuki]

We do enjoy bitterness, but in slightly a different way, I suppose. For example, towards the end of winter, we crave for young sprouts of butterbur, which are bitter. The craving for bitterness continues to June, when we have young shoots of bracken fern. We love all sorts of sansai (wild edible plants), which are usually bitter.

On the other hand, let me point out that traditional Japanese cuisine is a cuisine of subraction, where harshness and bitterness is intentionally removed to offer only the umami components of ingredients. This is one very important characteristic of japanese cuisine. Harshness and bitterness are usually disliked by many.

Another thing I want to point out is that whereas in English, only word, bitterness, is used to describe the bitterness of coffee, chocolate, green tea, persimmons, etc., we actually use two words in Japanese, nigami (bitterness) for coffee, chocolate, etc. and shibumi (astringency) for green tea, persimmons, etc. Nigai (bitter) and shibui (astringent) are adjective forms. Shibumi and shibui are everyday words, while astringency and astringent may be not.

Okinawan people do enjoy the bitterness of bitter gourds, etc., but that's not necessarily true of mainland Japanese.

[Blether]

Gouya (the Okinawan gourd) really is bitter - I've not been able to find the pleasure in eating it. Sanma guts, for those that choose to eat them, are bitter, so likewise. Uni can be bitter when the quality's not very good.

[nuppe]

On the other hand, let me point out that traditional Japanese cuisine is a cuisine of subraction, where harshness and bitterness is intentionally removed to offer only the umami components of ingredients. This is one very important characteristic of japanese cuisine. Harshness and bitterness are usually disliked by many..

Interesting and fascinating! I actually wondered if there was a connection between the love of umami and the attitude towards bitterness.

[nuppe]

we actually use two words in Japanese, nigami (bitterness) for coffee, chocolate, etc. and shibumi (astringency) for green tea, persimmons, etc. Nigai (bitter) and shibui (astringent) are adjective forms. Shibumi and shibui are everyday words, while astringency and astringent may be not.

I suppose beer is a little nigai? We do have a Norwegian word (stram) that might be used the same ways as astringent, but few people are aware of the distinction.

[nuppe]

Gouya (the Okinawan gourd) really is bitter - I've not been able to find the pleasure in eating it. Sanma guts, for those that choose to eat them, are bitter, so likewise. Uni can be bitter when the quality's not very good.

I get a feeling that Okinawa is the place to go to feel bitterness!

[Hiroyuki]

we actually use two words in Japanese, nigami (bitterness) for coffee, chocolate, etc. and shibumi (astringency) for green tea, persimmons, etc. Nigai (bitter) and shibui (astringent) are adjective forms. Shibumi and shibui are everyday words, while astringency and astringent may be not.

I suppose beer is a little nigai? We do have a Norwegian word (stram) that might be used the same ways as astringent, but few people are aware of the distinction.

Yes, beer is described as nigai (bitter) in Japanese. It still sounds to me a little strange that English-speaking people describe green tea as bitter. I feel like saying, "Green tea isn't bitter! It's shibui!".

I must add that high-quality green tea (gyokuro, for example) and high-quality matcha are not nigai at all. They taste almost sweet because of their high umami components. That being said, I don't mind having shibui green tea at all. On the contrary, I like to make my green tea very strong (thus very shibui).

[nuppe]

Now you make me want to drink Japanese again! Just one more question: When you talk of green tea and shibui; is that just about taste/sensation or does also the cultural-aesthetical dimension of the word join in? (or maybe this is a question that doesn't make sense, I feel I make the tea a little complicated)

[Hiroyuki]

Now you make me want to drink Japanese again! Just one more question: When you talk of green tea and shibui; is that just about taste/sensation or does also the cultural-aesthetical dimension of the word join in? (or maybe this is a question that doesn't make sense, I feel I make the tea a little complicated)

No, when used to describe tea, shibui simply means astringent. In present-day Japanese, shibui can mean cool, subdued (in a good way), etc. Fo example, shibui is often used to describe cool, handsome men (but not women). You can see examples of shibui otoko (= men) by clicking here.

Shibui can also have a negative meaning. For example, it can mean wry. You can see examples of shibui kao (= faces) by clicking here.

[Blether]

Is the Ernest Borgnine in category 1 ?

I'm going to add grapefruit (not exactly exclusively Japanese) and natsumikan. There are other Japanese citrus fruits that come under the western heading, 'bitter'.

[nuppe]

Edited October 8, 2009 by nuppe (log)